"Felt sad after dismissing Sachin for 98," says Shoaib Akhtar on World Cup 2003 clash

Akhtar wanted to see Sachin score a hundred in that high-voltage match.

Sachin Tendulkar scored an amazing 98 against Pakistan in 2003 World Cup | Getty

Shoaib Akhtar and Sachin Tendulkar used to have a rivalry on the field when they played for their respective countries. The former Pakistan pacer always gave an extra effort against Sachin to get better of him. On the other hand, batting great from India knew how to tackle the pace of Akhtar.

In the 2003 World Cup encounter between India and Pakistan, Sachin played a memorable knock, but he fell 2 runs short of his hundred. It was Shoaib who dismissed him.

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Akhtar recently revealed on a Helo Live session that he didn't feel good after getting Tendulkar out. "I was very sad because Sachin got out for 98. It was special innings, he should have touched the century mark. I wanted him to hit the century. For that bouncer, I would have loved to see a sixer, as earlier he hit."

Sachin had hit Shoaib for a six over the point region which is still in the hearts of Indian cricket fans. 

Akhtar would like to forget that match as it wasn't his day. The speedster had conceded 72 runs in 10 overs with just one wicket.

Lauding Sachin's prowess as a batsman, Shoaib said, "Tendulkar batted in the toughest era of cricket. If he had to get the chance now, he may hit more than 1.30 lakh runs. So it's not good to make a comparison between Sachin and Kohli."

After the COVID-19 pandemic, cricket may not be played in front of the crowd. Akhtar doesn't think it will be good for the game. 

"Playing cricket in the empty stadium may be viable and durable for Cricket boards. But I do not think we can market this. Playing cricket in an empty stadium is like marriage without a bride. We need crowds to play games. I hope the corona situation will be normalized within a year."

 
 

By - 18 May, 2020

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